Democrat Paige Cognetti won election to the U.S. House in Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, defeating incumbent Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan, according to the Associated Press.
The result flips the northeastern Pennsylvania congressional seat from Republican to Democratic control, giving Cognetti her first term in Congress. Cognetti, the mayor of Scranton, will represent Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District, which includes Lackawanna, Pike and Wayne counties, along with portions of Luzerne and Monroe counties. Bresnahan had held the seat since January 2025 after defeating Democratic Rep. Matt Cartwright in 2024.
Cognetti, who became Scranton’s first female mayor in 2020, campaigned on lowering costs, protecting healthcare access and bringing greater accountability to Washington. Her victory marked another significant Democratic gain in a competitive congressional district that includes both traditionally Democratic communities and Republican-leaning rural areas.
Bresnahan, a former construction company executive from Luzerne County, won his first term in Congress in 2024 after narrowly defeating Democratic incumbent Matt Cartwright. His reelection campaign emphasized cutting taxes, reducing regulations and supporting economic development, but he faced sustained criticism over hundreds of stock trades made during his time in office, which he said were handled by an outside financial adviser.
